Kolache Queen
Posted: Saturday, July 7, 2012 1:15 am | Updated: 12:07 pm, Tue Jul 3, 2012.
MORSE BLUFF – When it comes to making kolaches, few can match the skill of Nadine Racek.In fact, the 85-year old Morse Bluff resident is nicknamed the Kolache Queen.Her wall at home is filled with ribbons and her kolaches have been sent to California, Washington, Michigan and even Iraq.
Next, she plans to demonstrate her skills on July 7 as part of the Prague Q125 celebration.
Racek, a 1944 graduate of Prague High School, said Prague is known for its kolaches. She plans to demonstrate her skill in making the traditional Czech pastry at 11 a.m. in the Parish Hall with the help of Sandra Kavan.
Racek plans to bake a few pans of kolaches. She will also bring some from home to give out to the crowd.
“I will bring kolaches to pass around,” she said.
She has been baking kolaches since she was 12-years old and her pastries have been a hit since her father tasted the first one. He shared a rare compliment after eating the pastry.
“He said, ‘You should have your own bakery’,” Racek said.
Now, she has a kitchen specially designed for her kolache making. Ingredients are positioned in the kitchen for ease of access, an entire cupboard is filled with flower and another is filled with baking sheets.
She does travel to various shows and festivals to give demonstrations, but she stays busy baking in her kitchen mostly to fill orders now. She’s never advertised, she said. Instead, new customers come through word of mouth.
No order has been too large for her yet. She once made 1,500 kolaches when a local priest was ordained.
Between the awards she’s won and the kolaches she has sent across the county and world, Racek has become well known as the Kolache Queen. People flock to her even in other states when they see her custom license plate, which says Kolache, according to her daughter, Jerrine Racek.
“Everybody knows me for my kolaches,” Racek said. “It doesn’t matter where I go.”
Despite approaching her 86th birthday, she is not slowing down. She still bakes almost every day and does not let her age bother her, she said.
“I love baking,” she said. “I’ll never quit baking until I’m dead.”
Her legacy will be a sweet one, thanks to her baking. That is what she will be remembered for, according to Jerrine Racek.
“She’s left a legacy,” Jerrine Racek said. “She has a lot of followers and friends because of her baking.”
The Prague Q125 celebration will be held in Prague from July 6 through 8.
Next, she plans to demonstrate her skills on July 7 as part of the Prague Q125 celebration.
Racek, a 1944 graduate of Prague High School, said Prague is known for its kolaches. She plans to demonstrate her skill in making the traditional Czech pastry at 11 a.m. in the Parish Hall with the help of Sandra Kavan.
Racek plans to bake a few pans of kolaches. She will also bring some from home to give out to the crowd.
“I will bring kolaches to pass around,” she said.
She has been baking kolaches since she was 12-years old and her pastries have been a hit since her father tasted the first one. He shared a rare compliment after eating the pastry.
“He said, ‘You should have your own bakery’,” Racek said.
Now, she has a kitchen specially designed for her kolache making. Ingredients are positioned in the kitchen for ease of access, an entire cupboard is filled with flower and another is filled with baking sheets.
She does travel to various shows and festivals to give demonstrations, but she stays busy baking in her kitchen mostly to fill orders now. She’s never advertised, she said. Instead, new customers come through word of mouth.
No order has been too large for her yet. She once made 1,500 kolaches when a local priest was ordained.
Between the awards she’s won and the kolaches she has sent across the county and world, Racek has become well known as the Kolache Queen. People flock to her even in other states when they see her custom license plate, which says Kolache, according to her daughter, Jerrine Racek.
“Everybody knows me for my kolaches,” Racek said. “It doesn’t matter where I go.”
Despite approaching her 86th birthday, she is not slowing down. She still bakes almost every day and does not let her age bother her, she said.
“I love baking,” she said. “I’ll never quit baking until I’m dead.”
Her legacy will be a sweet one, thanks to her baking. That is what she will be remembered for, according to Jerrine Racek.
“She’s left a legacy,” Jerrine Racek said. “She has a lot of followers and friends because of her baking.”
The Prague Q125 celebration will be held in Prague from July 6 through 8.
